“Flowers unfold slowly and gently, bit by bit in the sunshine, and a soul too must never be punished or driven, but unfolds in its own perfect timing to reveal its true wonder and beauty.” The Findhorn Garden, from The Findhorn Community
April in Michigan hints of spring. On the backdrop of an ominous sky, daffodils withstand wind and rain, new buds emerge on branches of trees, and patches of green grass cover the soaked ground – a preface to the story of longer, lighter, warmer days ahead.
In schools, the paradox of spring is reflected in how teachers and students experience the final quarter of the school year amidst the anticipation of summer. On one hand, there’s a recognition and celebration of how much students have grown throughout the year. On the other hand, the year is not over yet – we want to make the most out of the time remaining. While growth cannot be forced, the conditions for growth can be optimized, and one key ingredient in such conditions is clarity relative to our destination: goal setting.
At Summers-Knoll, our spring professional development session on Friday, March 22nd focused on goal setting for individual students. Due to SK’s small class sizes, teachers are able to attend to each individual child’s growth and development. As a result of their ongoing (formative) assessments of each student across content areas, including social-emotional development, teachers can formulate SMART goals (goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely) for each student. Parents can also participate in setting SMART goals for their children, and ultimately, children can set SMART goals for themselves.
At SK’s parent-teacher-student conferences held next week (April 10 – 12th), the co-constructed action plans can leverage SMART goals as beacons that focus students’ efforts as they stride toward the 2023 – 2024 school year’s finish line. Informed by SMART goals, action plans provide a three-pronged approach to reaching those goals: what is the teacher going to do, what are the parents going to do, and what is the child going to do. The onus is on the whole team surrounding, and including, the child.
Understandably, our desired projections for students’ growth extends beyond this school year. We want to ensure they are well prepared for what awaits them in fall (and beyond) as well. Is it beneficial to look this far ahead? Absolutely. Long-term goals should inform the short-term goals. Preparing for 2024 Fall readiness should include a plan for continued summer learning and enrichment, as well as the 4th quarter action plan. So parents, as partners, teachers count on you to bring this longer-term visioning into the conversations about your children; together, we co-create the conditions for optimal growth that allows each child – each flower – to blossom, in their own time, to their full potential.